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Karyn G. Gershon
Executive Director
Karyn joined Project Kesher in 1994 and has overseen its
dramatic growth. Trained as a lawyer, Karyn was a litigator
with Katten Muchin & Zavis from 1986–1994. She
is a graduate of Cornell University and Northwestern University
School of Law. She was a fellow at the Wexner Heritage
Foundation. In 2004, she was named one of the Jewish Chicagoans
of the Year by The Chicago Jewish News. She, her husband
Mark, and their three children live in Wilmette, Illinois.
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Karen Bloom
Director of Organizational Development
Karen has worked in the Jewish Communal world in the area
of non-profit management and fund development for the
last 18 years. Prior to that, she was the founder and
co-President of an international wholesale travel company
for groups visiting the United States from overseas. Karen
serves on the board of Temple Israel of New Rochelle,
New York and is very active in her community. Karen finds
the mission of Project Kesher especially compelling; her
grandparents immigrated to the United States from Russia
in the early 1900's to escape anti-Semitism in their hometown
and to find a place to live openly as Jews.
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Shannon Rose
Executive Assistant
Shannon joined Project Kesher in February 2003 after working
as a Legal Administrator at Kraft Foods, Inc. Shannon
received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Carthage College
where she majored in International Political Economy.
In 1997, she spent time traveling through Hungary, Austria
and the Czech Republic to study the effects of democratization
on economic development. In 1998, her studies brought
her to the United Kingdom in order to study the cultural
effects of devolution. Shannon recently received her Master
of Arts Degree in Political Science from Loyola University,
Chicago, where her primary focus was on the relationship
between culture and democratization as brought on by the
end of the Cold War. In her spare time, Shannon enjoys
practicing yoga, skiing, reading and salsa dancing.
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Linda Flaxer
Director of Marketing and Communications
Linda has a BA from Brown University in Russian Studies
and an MBA from the Wharton School of Business in Marketing.
She has worked in advertising, business and program development
in both profit and non-profit fields. She is an active temple
member and community volunteer and is pleased to be able
to contribute to the development of women as leaders and
the betterment of civil society in the CIS.
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Erica Gerdes
Administrative Assistant
Erica Gerdes joined Project Kesher as a temporary employee
in May of 2006 and was brought on as a part time employee
the following December. Erica is involved with a number
of theatrical and comedic endeavors, including being a producer
and performer with Blewt! Productions, a board member of
the Camenae Ensemble Theatre Company, and an ensemble member
in the comedy group KOKO. When she isn’t at Project
Kesher, she works as a choreographer with her company We’re
Dancin’ Y’all! Erica lives in Chicago with her
husband Fuzzy, who is also a performer.
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CIS Staff
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